JP4886719B2 - Processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention replaces a pattern mask with a spatial light modulator (Digital Micromirror).
Device—hereinafter referred to as “DMD”. ) To expose (draw) an electrical circuit or the like with light such as ultraviolet light on an exposure object (hereinafter referred to as “work”) coated with a printed circuit board, a semiconductor, a photosensitive dry film on a liquid crystal surface, or a liquid resist. The present invention relates to a processing apparatus such as a maskless exposure apparatus.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a conventional exposure apparatus using a DMD, and FIG. 5 is an overall configuration diagram of the exposure apparatus. The light output from the light source 21 is converted into parallel light 21 a by the collimator lens 22 and enters the DMD 23. A large number of square micromirrors are arranged in the DMD 23. The DMD 23 is connected to a DMD control device 24, and the DMD control device 24 individually controls each micromirror of the DMD 23 on / off (rotation control). The DMD control device 24 is connected to the control device 50. When the micromirror is on, the parallel light 21a is reflected by the incident micromirror, is collected by the microlens 25 provided for each micromirror, and enters the substrate 26. When the micromirror is off, Incident at a position away from the substrate 26. The microlens 25 converges the parallel light 21a reflected by the micromirror in the direction of each side, and makes each side a spot having a size of several μm on the substrate 26.

  The XYθ table 30 is supported on an X table 31 that is movable in the X direction on the base 29, a Y table 32 that is movable in the Y direction on the X table 31, and a Y table 32 that is rotatable in the XY plane. And the θ table 33. The center of rotation of the θ table 33 is aligned with the center of the Y table 32. The θ table 33 is position feedback controlled by a motor equipped with an encoder, and is positioned in the rotational direction with an accuracy of 0.05 degrees. Each of the X table 31 and the Y table 32 is supported by a linear guide device (not shown), is subjected to position feedback control by a linear scale (not shown), and is positioned with an accuracy of ± 1 μm.

  The suction table 34 is fixed on the θ table 33. The surface of the suction table 34 is provided with a large number of holes communicating with an internal cavity, and the cavity is connected to a vacuum source 35. The substrate 26 is sucked and fixed on the suction table 34. Note that alignment marks (positioning marks) are provided at the four corners of the surface of the substrate 26.

  A CCD camera 40 is disposed at a position facing the XYθ table 30. The optical axis of the CCD camera 40 is perpendicular to the surface of the XYθ table 30. The CCD camera 40 is used to measure the coordinate position of the alignment mark on the substrate 26. The CCD camera 40 is connected to the control device 50 via the image processing device 41.

JP 2007-219011 A

  In the maskless exposure apparatus, an optical engine is provided, and light from the light source is irradiated to a predetermined position on the exposure object by the optical engine. The optical engine includes a DMD, a DMD control device, and optical components such as a microlens. This optical engine is expensive, and its price ratio in the entire exposure apparatus may exceed half.

  For example, the maskless exposure apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes one XYθ table and a CCD camera. Accordingly, it is impossible to perform an exposure operation using an optical engine while performing alignment work such as a workpiece and an exposure position on the workpiece. As a result, loading and unloading of workpieces that do not use an optical engine and alignment work time (alignment time) using a CCD camera, illumination device, image processing device, etc., and exposure work time using an optical engine are almost the same. There was a case that only became.

  The problems to be solved by the present invention include the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to increase work efficiency by increasing the usage rate of the optical engine.

According to the present invention, an irradiation unit that is provided facing a processing region and irradiates light from a light source onto a processing target and the processing target are relatively moved, and the light is incident on the surface of the processing target. In the processing apparatus for processing the surface, the inside of the processing region facing the irradiation means and the first alignment imaging region adjacent to the processing region is provided so as to be movable in the X direction and the Y direction. A first XY table that is positioned at a carry-out position when the workpiece placed on the workpiece is carried out, and a first adjacent to the opposite side of the first alignment imaging region with respect to the machining region and the machining region. the region of the second alignment imaging region provided so as to be movable in the X and Y directions to position the loading position when loading the workpiece placed on the first XY table first An XY table, an imaging device provided to face the first alignment imaging region and the second alignment imaging region, respectively, and imaging an alignment mark on the workpiece, and captured by the imaging device An image processing apparatus that calculates a coordinate value of a final processing position in the processing object based on the coordinate value of the alignment mark and the coordinate value of the designed alignment mark, and an unloading position on the first XY table. A reversing conveyance device that reverses the placed work object and places it on the carry-in position on the second XY table, and the work object on the first XY table after the alignment work is completed Either the front surface of the object or the back surface of the object to be processed on the second XY table is processed by the irradiation means. .

  When the machining operation is performed on one XY table, the alignment work of the next workpiece and the loading / unloading of the workpiece can be performed on the other XY table. Accordingly, it is possible to increase the working efficiency of the processing apparatus by increasing the usage rate of the optical engine.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. Here, a maskless exposure apparatus (hereinafter referred to as an exposure apparatus) will be described as a processing apparatus. First, the overall configuration will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a simplified front view of an exposure apparatus according to the present invention. 2A and 2B are partially enlarged views of the XYθ tables 1L and 1R in FIG. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the exposure apparatus according to the present invention. An optical engine (irradiation means) 4 is disposed at the center of the exposure apparatus. On the base 8, XYθ tables 1L and 1R are arranged on the left and right in FIG. The XYθ tables 1L and 1R are movable in the X and Y directions by a linear guide device.

  Details will be described below. The XYθ tables 1L and 1R will be described. The XYθ table 1L includes a Y table 1al, an X table 1bl, and a θ table 1cl, and the XYθ table 1R includes a Y table 1ar, an X table 1br, and a θ table 1cr. The exposure apparatus in this embodiment has linear guide devices in the X direction and the Y direction, and the Y tables 1al and 1ar of the XYθ tables 1L and 1R are common to the Y direction by a driving device (not shown). Move on the trajectory 11. The Y table 1al has a range (Y1 + Y) shown in FIG. 3 as a movement region, and the range (Y1 + Y) can be moved in the Y direction. Further, the Y table 1ar uses the range (Y2 + Y) shown in FIG. 3 as a moving region, and the range (Y2 + Y) can be moved in the Y direction. The Y tables 1al and 1ar have the tracks 12L and 12R in the X direction on the Y tables 1al and 1ar, respectively, and the X tables 1bl and 1br are movable in the X direction by the tracks 12L and 12R. The X tables 1bl and 1br respectively have θ tables 1cl and 1cr supported rotatably on the XY plane. The X tables 1bl and 1br and the θ tables 1cl and 1cr have a range X1 shown in FIG. 3 as a movement region in the X direction, and the range X1 can be moved in the X direction.

  The XYθ tables 1L and 1R respectively have suction tables 2L and 2R fixed on the θ tables 1cl and 1cr. The θ tables 1cl and 1cr are movable in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction). Further, the suction tables 2L and 2R have a negative pressure suction mechanism and a clamp for fixing a workpiece thereon. The driving device for the XYθ tables 1L and 1R in the X direction and the Y direction described above is composed of, for example, a linear motor or a motor and a ball screw.

  In FIG. 3, the X direction is the length direction and the Y direction is the width direction. In FIG. 3, the area of width Y and length X1 is the exposure area (processed area), the area of width Y1 and length X1 is the first alignment imaging area, and the area of width Y2 and length X1 is the first. 2 is an alignment imaging region. The length X1 is determined by the lengths of the Y tables 1al and 1ar. Further, the width Y of the exposure region is set so that 2Yt ≦ Y, for example, when the maximum value of the workpiece width is equal to the width Yt of the XYθ table. The widths Y1 and Y2 of the first and second alignment imaging regions are set to be at least larger than the width Yt of the XYθ table.

The XYθ table 1L includes a lifter 9 that operates to lift a work placed on the suction table 2L from the suction table 2L.
Here, the lifter 9 will be described. The lifter 9 is provided in the XYθ table 1L and the suction table 2L fixed thereon, so that the work placed on the suction table 2L is pushed up from the lower part of the work by a driving device (not shown) to be separated from the suction table. Operate. FIG. 2A shows a state in which the workpiece 10 is lifted from the suction table 2L by the lifter 9. The shape, size, contact position, and the like of the contact surface between the lifter 9 and the workpiece 10 can be changed as necessary. In the case of illustration, the lifter 9 is lifted by the piston operation using a cylinder (not shown), and the work 10 is lifted. When the lifter 9 is raised, the workpiece 10 is always kept parallel to the suction table 2L.
In addition, optical alignment devices (or imaging devices) 3L and 3R for detecting the positions of alignment marks provided on the workpiece are arranged above the XYθ tables 1L and 1R, respectively. Each of the optical alignment devices 3L and 3R includes two CCD cameras and an illumination device, and simultaneously images two pairs of alignment marks in the Y direction provided at the four corners of the workpiece with the CCD camera. The alignment marks provided at the four corners of the workpiece are provided by, for example, a drilled hole, a laser marking, or the like on both the front and back surfaces. An image processing device (not shown) is connected to each of the optical alignment devices 3L and 3R. The image processing device may be provided for each of the optical alignment devices 3L and 3R, or may be common. This image processing apparatus obtains the actual coordinate value of the alignment mark imaged by the CCD camera, and then determines the final exposure position (exposure) based on the actual coordinate value of the alignment mark and the coordinate value of the designed alignment mark. The XY coordinates of the spot) are calculated. Based on the XY coordinates of the final exposure position, position control of the XYθ table is performed.

In FIG. 1, a reverse conveyance device 5 is provided behind the optical engine 4. The reverse conveying device 5 has a rotating shaft 7 connected to a motor or the like (not shown), and has a hand 6 that can rotate with the rotating shaft 7. The hand 6 has a suction surface 6a, and the workpiece 10 can be suction-fixed on the suction surface 6a. In the standby state, the suction surface 6a of the hand 6 is parallel and upward with respect to the surfaces of the suction tables 2L and 2R. Further, the reverse conveying device 5 is supported by a track 5a in the Y direction which is different from the track 11 for guiding the XYθ tables 1L and 1R in the Y direction, and is movable within a predetermined range in the Y direction. .
As shown in FIG. 3, the control device 13 controls the XYθ tables 1L, 1R, the reverse conveying device 5, the lifter 9, and the like.

Next, the operation of the exposure apparatus in the present embodiment will be described using the flowchart of FIG.
First, after moving the XYθ table 1L to the loading position 1La (see FIG. 3) in the XYθ table 1L (S100), the workpiece 10 is loaded onto the suction table 2L by a workpiece loading device (not shown) (S105). After the work 10 is carried in, the work 10 is fixed on the suction table 2L by negative pressure suction and clamping of the suction table 2L. The XYθ table 1L is moved and imaged so that the optical axes of the two CCD cameras in the optical alignment device 3L are respectively aligned with the two alignment marks of the workpiece 10 (S110). The same is done for the remaining two alignment marks. Thereafter, based on the actual coordinate value of the alignment mark measured by the CCD camera and the coordinate value of the designed alignment mark, the position of the XYθ table 1L is corrected and final data on the exposure position coordinate is obtained. Thereafter, the XYθ table 1L is moved to the exposure scan position (S120), and the XYθ table 1L and DMD are controlled based on the final data to perform scan exposure (S125). After the scan exposure is completed, the XYθ table 1L is moved to the unloading position 1La (see FIG. 3) (S130). Next, the negative pressure suction and clamping of the suction table 2L are released, the work 10 is lifted in parallel by the lifter 9, and a space S is formed between the suction table 2L and the work 10 (see FIG. 2a).

  The reverse conveying device 5 is formed between the suction table 2L and the workpiece 10 by moving the hand 6 in a horizontal state and moving in the Y direction from the standby position that is the central portion (the central portion in the Y direction) of the track 5a. The hand 6 is inserted into the space S. After the hand 6 is inserted into the space S, the work 10 is sucked to the hand 6 by the suction surface 6a of the hand 6 (S200). If necessary, the lifter 9 may be lowered to reduce the gap between the work 10 and the hand 6 and then the work 10 may be attracted to the hand 6. FIG. 2B shows the state at this time. Thereafter, the control device 13 returns the lifter 9 to the original position, moves the XYθ table 1L to the loading position 1La, and performs the loading operation of the next workpiece 10 when the next workpiece 10 is present. Subsequently, the alignment work for the next workpiece 10 is performed.

  The reverse transfer device 5 moves in the direction of the loading position 1Ra in the XYθ table 1R with the hand 6 rotated, for example, 45 degrees upward after the workpiece 10 is attracted, and the XYθ table 1R moves to the loading position 1Ra to move the workpiece. Wait until you are ready to receive. After completion of the workpiece reception preparation of the XYθ table 1R, the reversing conveyance device 5 further rotates the hand 6 and places the workpiece 10 on the XYθ table 1R (the workpiece 10 is reversed and placed) (S210). After the suction table 2R operates the negative pressure suction and clamp to fix the workpiece 10 thereon, the reverse conveying device 5 cuts the suction to the workpiece and rotates the hand 6 upward (for example, the hand 6 is XYθ). The robot moves to the standby position (up to 90 degrees which is an angle perpendicular to the table 1R).

The XYθ table 1R on which the workpiece 10 is inverted and fixed is subjected to an alignment operation by the alignment marks provided at the four corners on the back surface of the workpiece, as in the case of the XYθ table 1L, by the optical alignment device 3R. That is, the XYθ table 1R is moved so that the optical axes of the two CCD cameras in the optical alignment device 3R are respectively aligned with the centers of the two alignment marks on the back surface of the workpiece, and the two alignment marks are respectively imaged (S305). The same is done for the remaining two alignment marks. Thereafter, based on the actual coordinate value of the alignment mark measured by the CCD camera and the coordinate value of the designed alignment mark, the position of the XYθ table 1R is corrected and final correction data for the exposure position coordinate is obtained (S310). ). Thereafter, the XYθ table 1R is moved to the exposure scan position (S315), and the XYθ table 1R and DMD are controlled based on the correction data to perform scan exposure (S320). After the scanning exposure is completed, the XYθ table 1R is moved to the unloading position 1Ra (see FIG. 3) (S325). Next, the negative pressure suction and clamping of the suction table 2R in the XYθ table 1R are released, and the workpiece is unloaded by a workpiece unloading device (not shown) (S330). On the other hand, in the XYθ table 1L, the operations of Step 100 (S100) to Step 115 (S115) are performed.
That is, when the exposure operation is performed with one XYθ table, the next work alignment operation can be performed with the other XYθ table.
The above operation is continued until there is no workpiece 10 to be exposed.

  In the present embodiment, only the XYθ table 1L is provided with the lifter 9. However, the lifter 9 may also be provided in the XYθ table 1R.

  In the maskless exposure apparatus of the present application, by having two XYθ tables and a reverse conveying device, the exposure of the front and back surfaces of the workpiece can be performed with one device, and the workpiece front surface exposure and the workpiece back surface exposure are performed alternately. be able to.

  As described above, according to the exposure apparatus according to the embodiment of the present application, it is possible to perform workpiece surface alignment and exposure, workpiece reversal, workpiece back surface alignment and exposure in one apparatus. That is, while the work exposure operation is being performed with one XYθ table, the alignment work for the next workpiece can be completed with the other XYθ table, so that the exposure operation can be performed immediately. The working efficiency in the maskless exposure apparatus can be increased by increasing the usage rate.

  Needless to say, it is not necessary to reverse the work using the reversing conveyance device 5, and the same effect can be obtained when different works are alternately exposed in the XYθ tables 1L and 1R.

  In this embodiment, the processing apparatus is configured such that the processing surface is parallel to the floor, but the processing surface may be configured to be perpendicular to the floor.

  The maskless exposure apparatus according to the present application is provided with the θ table. However, the positioning of the workpiece in the rotation direction may be performed by correcting the coordinate value data of the processing part in the rotation direction, and therefore it is not always necessary to have the θ table. There is no.

  Furthermore, in the maskless exposure apparatus of the present application, an optical engine including a DMD is used to position the light from the light source and expose the work, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a polygon mirror Needless to say, the present invention can also be applied to positioning the light from the light source by using.

  It goes without saying that the invention according to the present application can also be applied to direct illumination of laser light such as a laser processing machine.

1 is a simplified front view of a maskless exposure apparatus according to the present invention. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the XY (theta) table and reverse conveyance apparatus in the maskless exposure apparatus which concerns on this invention. 1 is a plan view of a maskless exposure apparatus according to the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the exposure operation | movement in the maskless exposure apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a whole block diagram of the conventional maskless exposure apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

1L, 1R XYθ table 3L, 3R Optical alignment device 4 Optical engine 5 Reverse transfer device 6 Hand

Claims (3)

An irradiating means for irradiating a processing object with light from a light source provided opposite to the processing area and the processing object are relatively moved, and the light is incident on the surface of the processing object to cause the surface to move. In the processing equipment to process,
The workpiece to be processed is placed on a workpiece region that is provided so as to be movable in the X direction and the Y direction in a region between a processing region facing the irradiation unit and a first alignment imaging region adjacent to the processing region. A first XY table for positioning to the unloading position when unloading;
The first and second alignment imaging regions adjacent to the processing region and the processing region and opposite to the first alignment imaging region are provided so as to be movable in the X direction and the Y direction . A second XY table for positioning to a loading position when loading the workpiece placed on the XY table;
An imaging device provided to face the first alignment imaging region and the second alignment imaging region, respectively, for imaging an alignment mark on the workpiece;
An image processing device that calculates a coordinate value of a final processing position in the processing object based on a coordinate value of the alignment mark imaged by the imaging device and a coordinate value of a design alignment mark;
A reversing conveyance device that reverses the workpiece placed at the carry-out position on the first XY table and places it at the carry-in position on the second XY table,
Either the front surface of the processing object on the first XY table or the back surface of the processing object on the second XY table after alignment work is processed by the irradiation means. Processing equipment.   The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first and second XY tables have a common guide device in the Y direction.   The reverse conveying device includes a suction unit, and the first XY table includes a lifter that lifts the workpiece placed on the first XY table, and the lifted workpiece is The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the reverse surface is sucked and reversed by the suction means of the reverse conveying device.